Reverse Culture Shock

Before I left the States, back in August, heck before I even left HWS last Spring, I was warned about reverse culture shock and adjusting to life once back in America. I’m glad to say that it’s been a smooth transition though.

My roommate, Yolie, and me. 

The 15-hour flight wasn’t so bad. I lucked out and had 3 seats to myself. So I was able to sprawl out and sleep for a while. I watched some movies, Going the Distance, the first hour of Inception, and then a few episodes of Glee and America’s Next Top Model.

Leaving Hong Kong

Clearing customs and picking up my luggage at JFK was easy-numerous long lines but it didn’t take too long. And then I finally saw my Mom and Nana. We grabbed sodas at the little convenience store (oh 20oz Diet Coke, how I missed you) and then lugged my suitcase and cardboard box (yep, my suitcase was overweight so I had to unpack some things at the check-in counter while the attendant constructed a box on the spot) to the car, where we head back to Massachusetts.

We broke the 5-hour trip up with a stop at Friendly’s for lunch in Connecticut and then I ended up sleeping the rest of the way home.

Jet lag wasn’t too much of a problem. I conquered it within 3 days or so. I would be fine all morning, then around 2pm I would get so exhausted and just crash. But I am now back to my normal sleeping routine.

In terms of culture shock, there have only been 3 main instances when I’ve had to stop and be like wait, “I’m in America- this isn’t how it’s done here.”

1.     When I’m running along the street, there have been numerous times when I’m like “Wait- where is the car coming from? What side of the street?” But then I figure it out and keep going.

2.     There have been numerous times when I’m brushing my teeth or washing my hands at the sink and stop and think “Wait- why is the water still running?” In my bathroom at Lingnan, the faucets were automatic, so you would turn it on and the water would run for 10-15 seconds and then turn off. You would have to keep pressing it on to keep the water running.

3.     I was eating lunch at Panera with my mom the other day and as we were getting ready to leave, I was ready to just leave my tray and walk away, figuring the employees would clean it up. Nope, that’s only in Hong Kong. Forgot I had to carry the tray over to the trash and clean it up myself.

I have been tempted to raise my hand and yell ‘mm-goi’ at restaurants to grab the waiter’s attention, but I hold back (In Hong Kong restaurants, the waiters wait for you to call them over and order, they don’t just check in on you every so often in).

I am anxious to get back to HWS and Geneva. I feel like culture shock at school will be very different since I’ll actually be doing what I was doing in Hong Kong, like going to school, rowing and such- not just working and hanging out. 

Departure

In 12 hours, I’ll be flying back to America. Eekk! I’m excited. My bags are just about packed, minus the last minute things, my ticket is printed, and my alarm is set for 4am (don’t worry- I have 3 alarms set- I will not sleep through them!). I think I’m ready.

When I booked my flight back in June, Orbitz told me my trip was 127 days and 128 nights. When I thought of it in those terms, day and night, it didn’t seem like a long time; 4 months seemed longer. And now, I can’t decide whether or not it seems like I just got here, or if I’ve been here forever. Looking back, I’ve done a lot. Thankfully I kept this blog because otherwise I am sure I wouldn’t remember half of my experiences. I completed everything that was on my “Things to Do in Hong Kong” list; I traveled to Thailand, Vietnam and Macau; explored as much of Hong Kong as possible and took 5 classes! I am very happy with my semester abroad; I was challenged and pushed outside of my comfort zone; I’ve learned to appreciate America more than ever before, but I’ve also gained a respect and understanding not only of Hong Kong but of many other South Asian countries. I’ve tried so many different types of food and have learned how to cook various dishes in a microwave.

 My List

About 3 or 4 weeks ago, I started making a list of things that I would be ‘Taking’ from Hong Kong and ‘Leaving’ in Hong Kong. To share a few (it’s been much easier to decide what I’m leaving rather than taking, but that’s not really important as I am sure ‘Taking’ list will grow once I’m back in America)…

I will be taking my chopstick skills, a greater appreciation for the American education system (the Hong Kong education system is a completely different story- basically only a certain amount of students can continue on after a certain point, and each year that number gets smaller and smaller)

I will be leaving the shower technique (you go to the shower fully dressed, leave the flip flops outside the shower, strip inside the shower stall, hang your clothes over this bar or in a bag, shower, put clothes back on. At the beginning of the semester I just about died from heat stroke doing this, so to avoid this, I timed my showers so my roommate wouldn’t be in the room); the discussion procedures (class discussions are more of a Q&A session rather than ‘discussion’ and the local students rarely talk, so there wasn’t a lot of communication within the classes), and the acceptability of spitting/burping/nose picking in public (it’s just nasty. I’m sorry. I’ve been on the MTR and see people picking their nose with their fingers, no tissues, or people hacking up mucus on the street. Not my cup of tea). I will also be leaving the bugs. Literally, the bugs here have attacked me. Anytime I’m outside, I get about 4 new bug bits. My calves are covered in bug bites.

The bathroom and showers

There are many things though that I wish I could take: the MTR system (literally, it can get you anywhere in Hong Kong; it’s so easy, accessible and cheap. I will surely miss it.), the money (sure, the exchange rate was great, but the smallest bill they use is $10, they have a $1, $2, and $5 coin, as well as $0.10, $0.20 and $0.50 coin. Things only cost $7.90 or $8.00, not $7.99 or $7.49, it’s so much easier to deal with money without having to worry about those little cents). I wish I could take some of the food back (dim sum, this green bean and minced meat meal, the fruit desert I wrote about earlier, all so delicious and can’t be found in the States). The final thing I wish I could take is the cleanliness of Hong Kong (I am pretty sure the cleaning people collect the trash on our floor at least 4 times a day; everyday, there is a lady sweeping the leaves off the path to our hostel; the elevator and escalator handrails are disinfected at least 4 times a day. It’s crazy, but it’s so clean).

Packing...

It’s been a great semester and I am thankful for every moment over the past 4 months.

Also, I'll leave you with a comparision of the weather here in HK, Hull and Geneva...

I am going to freeze.

The Peak at Night

Monday night was Anna, Lex and Tim’s last night in Hong Kong so we, along with Ryan and YoYo decided to check out the Peak at night and grab dinner in SoHo. We left campus a little before 5 and took the MTR to Hong Kong station, where we grabbed a bus that took us to the Peak. Unfortunately, we got stuck in rush hour traffic and it took a good hour for the bus to get to the top, but it was a fun experience. 

 When we finally got to the top, we got a little lost, since the bus dropped us off in a different location, and we ended up getting separated from Tim, Ryan and YoYo. Anna, Lex and I finally made it into the Peak Terrace, where all the shops are and wandered around for a while. We stuck around to check out the light show at 8pm, but we were on the wrong side of Victoria Harbor to actually see it. So we headed to SoHo for dinner. We grabbed dinner at Jasper’s, a restaurant that had a variety of dishes- from Italian and Mexican! 

We then headed back to campus, and reminisced on our past semester. Once we got back to campus, we said our good-byes, since Anna and Lex both left Tuesday morning (it is now Tuesday night, Hong Kong time).

Farewell Reception and the Weather

Last Monday night, OMIP hosted a Farwell Reception for all Inbound Exchange students. It provided a good opportunity to see a lot of the local and other international students once more before going our separate ways (even though I still have two weeks left). I am surprised at how many international students I don’t see. The first few weeks, I saw these kids multiple times a day, and now I’m lucky if I see them once every two weeks. School makes our lives so complicated.

A few students shared pictures and videos as well as speeches about their time here at Lingnan. It was great to hear other students’ experiences.

Lex, Kat and I at the Farewell Reception

In addition, OMIP does this cool thing called “Gold Books.” Each school it has a partnership with has a book and exchange students are encouraged to share their experiences and comments in the book. So Anna, Tim and I all shared our experiences and placed them in HWS’ Gold Book.

It’s been cooling down here, but by cooling down, I mean it’s still 70 degrees, but to the local students, and many internationals, it’s freezing. And okay, today it was around 60 and I was a little cold, but still, it’s NOTHING compared to winter in Geneva. So at the reception, I was wearing shorts and a t-shirt and the Vice President of Academic Affairs (?) comes over and starts talking with us. He was taken aback by the fact that I was in shorts still, and asked where I was from. “Boston” I replied. He just laughed.

Just today (Wednesday, December 8) I have seen so many winter coats. It’s ridiculous. I seriously wonder what the exchange students think when they come to HWS.